A Serious Marketing “Oops” – and a Correction
Under Armor is a popular manufacturer of athletic and sporting wear. They’re also very popular among the military. The company is usually one of the “good guys” when it comes to supporting the military.
However, even the “good guys” can goof. And recently, Under Armor did just that.
Here are images of two of Under Armors recently-released t-shirts:
The first shirt was called “Band of Ballers”. I don’t think I have to tell anyone what image that one what image was used as its pattern – but if you’re having a temporary brain cramp and can’t recall, here’s the original image.
The second shirt was called “Crossing Over”. It also should look familiar – it’s based on the famous painting of Washington crossing the Delaware River during the American Revolution.
The resulting reaction from serving military and vets – and some of the public – was predictable. Much was highly negative; some was supportive.
To their credit, Under Armor seems to have pulled the shirts from sale quite quickly, and has removed their images from their website. They’ve also rather profusely apologized for offending serving military and veterans. No word on whether they fired the “marketing genius” involved in approving the sale of those shirts.
Just a bit of proof that not only government agencies can have those “WTF were you thinking?” moments. Highly successful commercial firms can have them too.
Category: "Teh Stoopid", Society, WTF?
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I think this is a classic case of the internet classically overreacting to pretty inconsequential things. Especially seeing as how both of these shirts are already based on artist representations of what actually happened (one is a painting, the other the photographers re-shot the flag raising to make it a better picture). I mean, if people can photoshop Hitler ‘staches or Che hats onto images of the President and that isn’t considered offensive, how is this?
Got an example of a liberal organization selling such a product as you describe? If not, you probably need to find a better example to illustrate your point. Let me spell it out for ya, “Doctor”. Based on your past comment history, you seem to need a lot of that. Under Armor is a well-known supporter of the military, uses that as a marketing point, and gets a lot of business from that stance. Here, they were “tone deaf” regarding two new products that didn’t play well with their previous corporate stance. In business that happens from time to time (see Edsel, Ford, and Aztek, Pontiac). To their credit, Under Armor realized that quickly and reacted accordingly. It would have been better if they’d caught it earlier, but that doesn’t always happen. Regarding the t-shirts in question being offensive – that’s an “eye of the beholder” issue. My reaction was pretty much “clever adaptation, but some folks in their target demographic are gonna be pissed”. It was eminently foreseeable that those two images would likely not “square” well with Under Armor’s previous marketing campaigns and support for the military and would likely cause negative publicity due to that past corporate stance. Not catching that a priori is where I fault Under Armor. A firm with a more cutting edge marketing history that didn’t include major public support for the military probably would have fared differently. The example you gave in your comment isn’t terribly relevant unless you can find a firm with a reputation for supporting liberal causes and politicians that has come out with a line of Obama merchandise sporting Hitleresque mustaches and/or a Mussolini uniform, or wearing a Che hat. Good luck with that. I also noticed you didn’t include any of the depictions of “chimpy” or “Bushitler” we saw a few years ago in your examples of “offensive material”. I’m thinking that omission wasn’t by accident, but I guess I could be wrong. For the record: both the Obama depictions as fascist dictator or Communist and the Bush(43)-era depictions of “Chimpy” and “Bushitler” are IMO about equally… Read more »
^^^^^ Standing golf clap for Hondo. ^^^^^
Well said.
Thank you Hondo, as I stand to applaud.
“(one is a painting, the other the photographers re-shot the flag raising to make it a better picture)”
That statement about the “posed” second flag raising shows your complete ignorance of the circumstances.
Here’s a little history lesson for you.
A Patrol from E Co 2nd Bn 25th Marines, 5th Marine Division was tasked with mopping up/clearing Mt Surabachi on the 4th Day of the battle of Iwo Jima.
To their surprise the Patrol reached the summit without resistance. Their Bn commander had gioven the Lt in Charge a small American flag to rect at the summit to let everyone know the summit was clear. Lou Lowery, from Leatherneck Magazine snapped a photo as it went up. The Marines and sailors who saw this cheered loudly. With Mount Surabachi taken the Jaspanese had lost a vital outpost and now had a limited ability to to direct fire on the Marines coming ashore.
The Battalion Commander wanted to retrieve the flag for the Battalion, and after getting a largere flag from a nearby vessel set a detail up to replace it. The detail whose main job was running communications wire to the summit(not replacing the flag) climbed to the top, and after getting a broken water pipe for a pole erected the second flag while the other flag was lowered. No fanfare, no celebration.
Joe Rosenthal, who arrived to late to photo the first flag raising scrambled to get a shot of the second flag going up.
He took many other pictures that day, and thought nothing of that particular photo.
It wasnt until the picture was developed in Guam that the AP saw what they had.
Dont come in here with half assed history posting your bullshit.
He’s probably confusing it with this photo by Joe Rosenthal, Just an Old Dog – which Rosenthal clearly said WAS staged. While it is an “Iwo Jima flag photo by Joe Rosenthal”, it is not THE Iwo Jima flag photo that made Rosenthal world-famous.
The Rosenthal photos are two of three reasonably famous photos concerning the US flag at Iwo. As you noted, both relate to the SECOND US flag raised there.
The most widely-known photo of the first flag-raising is this one:
There was also color video taken of the first flag raising. However, due to the spectacular nature of Rosenthal’s once-in-a-lifetime image, both the still and the video are almost never seen.
The confusion over the “staged” aspect of the famous Iwo flag photo stems from Rosenthal’s answer to an ambiguous question well after the fact.
Rosenthal was asked if the Iwo Jima photo was staged. Rosenthal thought the individual was asking about the very-obviously staged group photo, and told the questioner that it was. The questioner did not clearly specify which of Rosenthal’s photos they were referencing in the question (it’s possible that the questioner didn’t know about the group photo).
Unfortunately, the individual asking the question was asking about Rosenthal’s famous photo of the 2nd flag raising. This misunderstanding led to the erroneous tale that “the Iwo Jima photo was staged” that circulated for years, and still circulates today among those who haven’t bothered to research the truth.
@Just an Old Dog:
Thank you for posting that. When I read that “posed for a better picture” bullshit the lights went red and the foaming mouth thing started.
My response, would have started with “Mother****ing piece of dumbass shit” and went down hill from there.
I prolly would have gotten in trouble. So, I owe you for the save.
For the last two weeks I have been listening to “Flags of our Fathers” during my morning run, and my wife and I watched the movie last night. Masterful.
As of Saturday they were still on D-M AFB. Ft H never put them out or never got them
How much ya’ wanna bet that someone at UnderArmor got shitcanned over that fiasco?
I hope not.
Maybe tossed in the dunk tank for troop morale for an hour or so, but not fired.
They tried and screwed up.
If I got fired for every mistake I made at work I would be living in the street…
Or you would get a job in Congress.
I wrote to UA yesterday. Sorry guys, I take this stuff seriously….when you screw up there has to be consequences. How many managers/executives had to sign off on this insulting ad campaign?
Email:
I don’t often write to companies to complain about anything…I just figure that no one will pay attention to me anyway.
The following is not an exaggeration: my kids asked me what I wanted for Father’s Day – I said UA long johns since a hunting buddy swears they are the best he’s every owned! My request has changed since this advertising fiasco, I will never wear UA garments of any type after viewing the T-shirt mentioned above, re: Iwo Jima
What were you thinking??
I am a combat Veteran of Vietnam, three of my four sons are serving or did serve in the military and as of today you’ve lost us all!!
Sincerely,
M M******
Seriously guys and gals. We gotta quit killing people for being idiots.
I have spent much of my life being an idiot and still have done pretty well.
So please give them a break. If they hadn’t pulled it immediately or tried to give us some of the same crap Turdbath and the rest of them give us I would be all for it.
But I’m with Jonn here letting bygones be bygones.
We can get mad at others without turning it into a hatefest.
Yep, I’m firmly on the side of the idiot at Under Armor.
Us idiots gotta stick together!!!
I wish I could find a picture of James Watts Bronze Foot award for banning the Beach Boys from a White House function by President Reagan.
That was great, I still remember laughing for about a day after seeing that picture and identifying so much with Watt.
Maybe we should start giving Bronze Foot Awards to people that stick their feet in their mouths!
I’d win one for sure!!!!!
I remember an episode of “Gomer Pyle” where they had “The Lead Boot Award” a jump boot dipped in lead that was a booby prize for “Aaaw Shits”, maybe there could be a monthly award of that for moves like this, methinks UnderArmor deserves a “Lead Boot” or a “Bonehead Award”!
They are a business who hoped to market something. They pulled it and that’s that. Little Harm, for sure a Foul. I like their products.
I’m glad it got corrected, but for me it’s a non-issue. I hate shopping for clothes. Why? Because my base-line reaction to most women’s clothing is:
“Oh, HELL NO! I wouldn’t go to a TRAIN WRECK in that!”
Walk through the women’s section in any store, and then get back with me on stupid designs and sayings on shirts.
UA agrees with us – those images were in bad taste. Somebody at UA didn’t notice but The Company As A Whole agrees and they pulled them. That was not free for them and that is right, mistakes should not be painless. Speaking for myself, my house has too much glass for me to throw stones.
I thought the first one was fairly funny, being a mash up of the Iwo Jima flag raising and O’Bozo’s first term pushing the midnight street corner basketball for wayward yutes (another socialist failure).
They fucked up, they fixed it, I can forget it.
I like their gear, I will continue to buy their gear. It’s the best stuff to wear when refereeing in cold weather as is often the case during the fall season especially in November here in New England. You can run and sweat and still keep warm and relatively dry.
If an image of some guys putting up a basketball hoop created by some knucklehead who didn’t think it through with respect to its resemblance to raising the flag at Iwo Jima (which was the second raising of a flag on Iwo Jima) offends you I suspect you spend a lot of time offended.
Veritas Omnia Vincit…”They fucked up, they fixed it, I can forget it.” My sentiments as well. Thank you.
I love stupid tshirts, Tshirthel.cpm (Shameless Plug) is one of my favorite places to browse. If I had seen either of these shirts there I would have groaned and said that’s not right and moves on. I expect to see mildly offensive stuff there.
UA doing this would be the same as finding piss in your MT, someone has some explaining to so because we expect better.
You know, I really can’t get there from here when it comes to the Washington tee. I think it’s funny. Commercials have used his image for years, including Dodge a few years ago when he came across some ground to lead troops against the Redcoats in a Charger. I also think back to the 60’s when shows such as Hogan’s Heroes and McHale’s Navy came out. Is a POW camp funny? How about PT boat crews in the Pacific during WW II? Those shows came out when the WW Veterans were in their 40s. Some complained but most didn’t. I don’t know. I get the Iwo Jima flag raising issue. It is quite specific and tied to a horrific battle, so I can easily see how folks can be upset by it. What is more upsetting is that I would bet dollars to donuts that most teenagers today don’t get the connection between those images and our history.
The shirts are fine. People are over-reacting.
Oh really, our booger-eating little thumbsucking Smurf-hugging unicorn-lusting glittery gargoyle gonad-sniffing twinkle-toed candyassed Sparkle Pony? You didn’t need to offer your opinion here, because I and many others here don’t give a rotten rusty fuxx what it is, you brainless little fluff-head!
I’m sorry, API, but after reading that tirade, I had to post this:
Nice pick, I remember watching that when I was a kid! AS TO little Larsie-parsie, every time he burps here after eating his boogers, I just want to stomp him like the cockroach that he is!
Was your MOS 642L (anonymous shit talker)?
Not sure I’d go as far as to say they’re “fine” – I see them as being in bad taste. But they’re also hardly cause for great angst, particularly now that Under Armor has decided to pull them.
I am toying with a couple of ads that that some firearms manufacturers might be interested in. Well, they’re not ads, really, they’re tee shirts. The first tee will feature James Brady and the second Gabby Giffords. The caption on each will be: “Hey, you don’t have to have a hole in your head to be against guns, but it helps!” Whaddaya think Lars? Is that fine?
My point is that the line is crossed when a horrible event near and dear to the hearts of many decent Americans crosses becomes a marketing gimmick. I do distinguish between the two UA tees, as I said above.
LIKE.
You didn’t have a problem with it, Veterans did. UA apoligized and pulled it.
I guess they respect Veteran’s opinions much more than yours, as they should,
Because you are full of shit.
I posted with my real name. I am a veteran. I am not full of shit.
These shirts are portraying events that are as much fiction as reality. Yes a flag was raised over Iwa Jima, but the flag in the famous image was a replacement flag raised later because the first flag raised was too small, and while not technically staged the scene was a bit “Hollywood”.
The Washington crossing the Delaware painting is essentially complete artist imagination. Painted in Germany 75 years after the even by a man born 40 years after the event. It does not portray anything that actually happened other than there were boats and Washington was in one of them.
They are iconic American images but trying to act like they are sacred is absurd. Using the images is not more disrespectful of veterans as using the “American Gothic” image would be disrespectful to farmers.
It looks like UA sided with those of us who thought it was in poor taste. Feel free to start your own company and attempt to peddle off idiotic shit if you like.
I guess your opinion doesnt carry any weight compared to mine on the issue. Have fun being on the losing side.
By the way there wasn’t a fucking thing “Hollywood” about the second flag raising.
The Bn commander decided that he wanted the original flag that was raised and also wanted to put up a larger flag.
Joe Rosenthal and his camera just happened to be there when it happened.
I see our wind forecaster is back.
LT….I am reacting, not overreacting. The shirts sucked, UA acknowledged that and pulled them. Good on them for pulling them, and fuck you very much.
Eat a dick, Larsy-boi. Nobody asked you.
I completely agree. Too many of these uber patriots are starting to smack of the old witch hunts in the 16th century.
Another sniveling snot monkey of a candyassed troll. YOU don’t need to post your opinion here, jason nutsniffer, because I and most of the others here don’t give a ratfuck about booger-eating little bedwetters like you posting from your Mommy’s basement.
are your panties in a wad pal???oh. the horror of that shirt. I nearly broke down and wept when I saw it. it was so disrespectful. You fucking pussy. dry up. I don’t ever want you “brave” veterans ever complaining about muslims reacting to perceived attacks on their religion again. you can dish it out but you cant take even the slightest representation of your own symbols that don’t fall in line with your nuttery. FIrst amendment not only applies to you. I mean this is nonsense.
You know, when I first saw your reply to the APF’s comment, I was going to write something funny about his being TAH’s official greeter. Now, having read two additional comments by you, I’d say he hit it on the nose. You really sound like an asshole. And what in the hell does the 1st Amendment have to do with this? Did the government order UA to stop marketing the shirts? And how in the world did you manage to wedge Muslims into this?
Little boy jason, here’s to you -*PTUI*
Meh. Put me in with the “what’s the big deal?” crowd.
The Iwo Jima shirt doesn’t even rate a .1 on my outrage-o-meter but maybe that’s because I’m not a Marine.
I swear some of these easily outraged veterans remind me of the Islamic rage boys who get their turbans in a twist every time somebody looks crosseyed at a Koran
(CROSS-eyed, see what I did there? MICROAGRESSION!)
“The Iwo Jima shirt doesn’t even rate a .1 on my outrage-o-meter but maybe that’s because I’m not a Marine.”
Well I am and I thought it sucked ass. That being said expressing displeasure over a tasteless ad by writing a letter of protest isnt the same as screaming in the street, or beheading people like the goat-fuckers do.
Semper Fi brother.
totally agree. some of you need to get a hobby and stop looking for reasons to get your uber patriotism in a snit.
Really, o little booger-eating snot monkey? Unicorn crotch-sniffing Care Bear-lusters like you are all alike, you’re the ones either acting like you’re shit-scared of us Vets in public or you just meekly give us a lukewarm “thank you” while looking away from us, but you act like you’re John Wayne, Clint Eastwood, and Chuck Norris all rolled into one in online threads, GFY you candyassed snot monkey!
I am a veteran you idiot.
NO little boy, your years of HS JROTC does not count as prior service.
You lose.
An idiot or a group of idiots acting like an idiot or a bunch of idiots really isn’t news. People being free to get offended by something, anything, really isn’t news either. Still being able to decide whether or not to purchase an item passed upon any criteria we wish to use is great.
It does take a special kind of stupid to get all offended that someone else can be offended by something which is none of your business and demand that anyone pay attention to your opinion about that offense.
Now you go and put some small Confederate flags in the ground in a cemetery full of Confederate Soldiers, that’ll fire some folks up…
True fact: Confederate gravestones have a pointed top versus the standard Union Army gravestones. It was said they were made that way so “No Yankee could ever comfortably rest his hind end on a Rebel’s tombstone.”. No joke, I’ve done Civil War Reenactments and living history demonstrations as well as memorial ceremonies, Confederate gravestones are pointed at the top!
Being offended is the price you pay for living in a free society. While I thought the Iwo shirt was in very poor taste, and wish they hadn’t done it, I wasn’t really offended. They showed good will when they found that many Vets were upset with them.
This marketing gimmick probably rates up there with a few other stupid marketing moves, but they got wise and pulled it.
No skin off my nose.
However, the shirts were banned for use by soldiers crewing vehicles when I was in Iraq…..nasty thing about some synthetics when exposed to flame….they tend to melt to the skin.